THE FLOWERING CURRANT 483 



when very young, with brown or yellow resinous beads which dis- 

 appear with age; leaves of young shoots sharply and deeply 3-5- 

 lobed, the lobes coarsely and somewhat sharply toothed, truncate, 

 or very broadly wedge-shaped at base, l%-2 inches (4-5 cm.) 

 broad, resembling maple leaves in form ; leaves of bearing shoots 

 smaller and narrower at base, commonly 3-lobed, the lobes often 

 short, broad and entire; peduncles short, few-flowered, emerging 

 from clusters of leaves; bracts large, leaf-like, commonly exceed- 

 ing the pedicels; flowers spicy-scented, yellow and showy; calyx - 

 tube %-/^ inch (10-12 mm.) long, narrow and glabrous, lobes 

 spreading, broad, obovate or oblong, obtuse, one-third as long as 

 the tube; petals obovate, erose, red, %-% as long as the calyx- 

 lobes ; stamens spreading and alternating with the petals ; style 

 longer, undivided; fruit round or oval, dark brown or black, 

 commonly with a bluish bloom, flavor peculiar. 



Var. TENUIFLORUM* (Lindl.), Torrey. (Fig. 109.) 



Taller, leaves thick, light green, broadly 3-5-lobed, racemes 

 longer and more loosely flowered; flowers scentless; berries 

 amber colored, approaching a pale cherry -red when fully mature, 

 acidulous, without aroma. 



Original distribution. From the Mississippi Valley westward to 

 the Rocky Mountains. The variety from somewhat east of the 

 Rocky Mountains to the Pacific coast. 



For the position of Biles aureum in cultivation, see Chapters 

 XIV and XV. 



Many synonyms for the preceding species are to be 

 met with in horticultural and botanical writings. The 

 following are added, either on account of having been 

 mentioned in American horticultural literature, or be- 

 cause not easily found elsewhere. 



R. acerifolium, hort.=rubrum. 

 R. Beatonii, hort.=Gordonianum. 

 R. dikuscha, Tisch.= nigrum. 



*Professor Greene considers this western form a distinct species, but Professor 

 Piper, of Washington, writes that he has seen forms with red fruit, with yellow 

 fruit, and with black fruit growing close together, and that all had distinctive 

 flavors. The form described by Rydberg (Flora of Nebraska, Part 21:71) as var. 

 chrysoeoccus, probably belongs to this variety. 



